Wilton Garden Club Rakes in Awards

Just what do those Garden Club members do, anyway? While some might conjure visions of old ladies in straw hats picking weeds, think again. That is not who they are. Most people do not realize that garden club members all over the country and Connecticut come from all walks of life and spend countless hours quietly serving their towns in a myriad of ways; youth gardening, civics, conservation, and education are a few. And most women and men (yes, men are so very welcomed to join) become garden club members for many reasons, but often at the top of the list is that perfect opportunity to contribute to their communities. They find out as members how rewarding and fun that can be, so members of the Wilton Garden Club are very grateful for the many awards they received on October 30th at the Annual Federated Garden Clubs of Connecticut Awards Luncheon. Wilton Garden Club president, Nancy Greeley was delighted and stated, “This was a memorable day for us. Our members work tirelessly all year long on projects benefiting our town of Wilton, so we are extremely grateful to receive this recognition.” From the pollinator pathway, youth gardening with donations to our food bank, to maintaining the town gardens and lots more worthy projects, this organization demonstrates a definite sense of caring for their community which consequently makes this a special town with attributes people want to see when choosing a place to call home.

List of the Wilton Garden Club honors bestowed:

National Garden Clubs:
1. Youth Horticulture Award - A Certificate of Merit to the Overall Winner for the most significant effort in planting and growing horticulture in an outdoor area. The award was accepted by Youth and Family Gardening chairs Pam Nobumoto and Laurie Musilli.

Federated Garden Clubs of CT:

YOUTH:
2. Luckner Youth Award - for the time spent working with and teaching Boy Scouts and Girl Scouts at the Trackside Neighborhood Garden, various Town Gardens and the community
3. Youth Award of Excellence - for engaging the Wilton High School students in all aspects of our club and in various town gardens and historic locations in town during their Internship Program

CIVICS:
4. Award of Honor- maintaining a record of exceptional achievement, for over a period of 5 years, in upholding the aims and purposes of the Federation. Award was accepted by Civics chairs Suzanne Knutson and Linda Schmidt.
5. Civic Development Award of Excellence - for many civic projects, beautification of downtown by raising funds and revitalizing flowering baskets and seasonal displays on light poles.

INDIVIDUAL AWARDS:
6. CT Tribute Award - Youth - Pam Nobumoto - inspiration to members and dedication to the club, youth programs, Trackside, Food Pantry and Senior Center.
7. Pauline Tyler Award-Environmental Concerns and Conservation- Jackie Algon- for unwavering support of conservation related issues, Town of Wilton Tree Committee, Wilton Conservation Commission and Wilton Go Green.
8. Certificate of Achievement- Elizabeth Craig - participation in all aspects of the Pollinator Pathway; Chairs the Inland Wetland Commission and Zero Waste Fair; active member of Conservation Committee and Wilton Go Green